September 2009
September 30, 2009
Quote of the day
Don't flaunt your success, but don't apologize for it either.
-- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
TakingITGlobal Video 15
Student survey 2009 Question 8
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
Creativity Expert Sir Ken Robinson to Speak in Saskatoon
In 2005, he was named as one of Time/Fortune/CNN's 'Principal Voices'. In 2003, he received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II for his services to the arts. He speaks to audiences throughout the world on the creative challenges facing business and education in the new global economies. His new book, currently a New York Times Best Seller, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything (Penguin/Viking 2009) is being translated into eight different languages.
News Item . College of Arts and Science . University of Saskatchewan
Check out his video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY
September 29, 2009
Quote of the day
One principal reason why people are so often useless is that they
neglect their own profession or calling, and divide and shift their
attention
among a multitude of objects and pursuits.
-- Nathaniel Emmons
Grumpy
TakingITGlobal Video 14
Student survey 2009 Question 7
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
September 28, 2009
Quote of the day
How to succeed: try hard enough. How to fail: try too hard.
-- Malcolm Forbes
Common Sense
TakingITGlobal Video 13
How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles
It has everything, under education there is a description on how to slap fat....I have seen it all.
eHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles
More Dissertation Advice: Canadian Style
Wow food for thought...thanks for the time taken to help.
More Dissertation Advice: Canadian Style « Virtual High School Meanderings
Student survey 2009 Question 6
Sorry have not done this in a few days..and there is 17 questions and we are only on 6...more to come.
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
Boolify Project: An Educational Boolean Search Tool
A very cool search engine for kids.
Boolify Project: An Educational Boolean Search Tool
By 2040 you will be able to upload your brain... - Science, News - The Independent
Mine will need a fairly small sized hard drive.
By 2040 you will be able to upload your brain... -
Science, News - The Independent
The Ten Commandments of eLearning
We discovered 'The Ten Commandments of eLearning" as elucidated by Cath Ellis and Clive Shepherd. We've decided to follow in the same vein and list our commandments. First off, we thought ten is too many to remember, so we cut it down to five. There are some similarities to Cath and Clive's commandments but that is to be expected given the nature of this post.
The Ten Commandments of eLearning | Upside Learning Blog
Three Future Directions of E-Learning
When asked about the trends in e-learning, the contributors to the E-Learning Handbook: Past Promises, Present Challenges, saw a similar dichotomy. On the one hand, almost everyone thought the quality of e-learning would improve and become more responsive to learners. On the other hand, nearly everyone saw the emergence of less expensive, less thoughtful e-learning. In addition, the contributors saw one other trend that might help to reconcile this dichotomy: e-learning as a way of life. The following describe their insights.
Three Future Directions of E-Learning - 2009 - ASTD
September 27, 2009
Quote of the day
Some aspects of success seem rather silly as death approaches.
-- Donald A. Miller
TADO Picture Showcase
Over the last year we have been putting together a gallery of copyright free images that we can use in our courses. By asking people in facebook to join the Teaching and Developing Online Fan group and share their images we have built a great collection. Thanks to Raylene for all her work in adding images to the collection. If you are on facebook join the group and add your images.
We hit the 250 members mark which is so exciting...
We have 2488 images
We have added 1518 to the TADO Picture Gallery and continue to add we will catch up soon...
Take a sec and check out the gallery...
TADO Picture Showcase
Feel free to comment and vote for your favourite images.
And last but not least keep adding those images...you have made a very cool collection so far...so keep them coming.
Yahooooo
Overeducated
TakingITGlobal Video 12
September 26, 2009
Quote of the day
People seldom see the halting and painful steps by which the most insignificant success is achieved.
-- Anne Sullivan
TakingITGlobal Video 11
September 25, 2009
Unimaginative
Quote of the day
After my spectacular failures, I could not be satisfied with an ordinary success.
-- Mason Cooley
TakingITGlobal Video 10
September 24, 2009
Radioactive cats
Quote of the day
What counts is not the number of hours you put in, but how much you put in the hours.
-- Unknown wise person
TakingITGlobal Video 9
Unmuzzling Diploma Mills: Dog Earns M.B.A. Online
Sure makes me proud to have my Masters.
September 23, 2009
Real-time Web keeps social networkers connected
Such is life in the post-Web 2.0 world. The latest iteration of the Internet -- deemed the "real-time Web" by some analysts, is exemplified by the obsessive use of PCs or cellphones for quick interactions and dips into the online information stream. This hyper-connectedness is fueled by the rise in social media and distinguished by quick, short communication and, increasingly, an absence of privacy.
Real-time Web keeps social networkers connected - USATODAY.com
Teachers Learn Too: Developing a PLN
This summer I have learned so much about technology and teaching. Almost all of my learning has come from the internet and the connections I have made online. One of the most important things I have learned is how to develop a PLN. My PLN is still very much in development, but I add new contacts everyday.
Reflections of a Classroom Teacher: Teachers Learn Too: Developing a PLN
Quote of the day
I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure -- which is: Try to please everybody.
-- Herbert B. Swope
Blogging About Generational Differences
Next in the series of blogging about entries... Generational differences.
Blogging About Generational Differences « Virtual High School Meanderings
TakingITGlobal Video 8
Space Poetry
Students are overlooked.
From the words and comments made in this chapter, turning to the learner for insight in how to create a powerful online course seems to be a most logical thing to do.
They why do we so seldom turn to the learner for such insight? The student is often overlooked, or at best, the last component in the teaching-learning environment that is called upon to make input.
The eight categories that emerged from these interviews all share a common element - they emerged from a desire on the part of these learners to share what it feels like to participate in a powerful and well organized online learning experience. Interestingly, these categories are not defined in terms of specific strategies and techniques that should be done to make an online course effective. Instead they are written in terms of the learner's feelings associated with his/her meaningful and valued participation in an online environment. There is no prescription included that specifies how the educator should proceed. The challenge to the distance educator is to understand the feeling expressed by these learners - having a sense of autonomy, being accountable to each other, allowing me to set a flexible schedule, expressing myself in writing, etc - and then create a distance education learning environment that allows such feelings to flourish.
The above was taken from a book I am reading called:
Making Distance education work: Understanding learning and Learners at a distance... S. Joseph Levine. pg 96
September 22, 2009
Quote of the day
A word to the wise ain't necessary - it's the stupid ones that need the advice.
Bill Cosby
Interactive, animated scenarios using motion paths in PowerPoint 2007.
Screenr - @elearning:
Interactive, animated scenarios using motion paths in PowerPoint 2007.
Bullied at School
TakingITGlobal Video 7
September 21, 2009
TakingITGlobal Video 6
Quote of the day
Ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put.
Winston Churchill
Teaching and Developing Online SCCS style.
This is a simple view of what we do check it out.
SCCS The Brain View
Thanks to Kelli for updating the brain. This is what we do at the SCCS. This is an extensive view of our world. Hope you enjoy.
The Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School The Brain.
September 20, 2009
The Origin of the Nerd
In the little more than a decade since I created my original web page here about the origin of the word nerd, it has grown considerably, in part due to various controversies about the word's origins as well as to new information and speculation about its history. My views on the term's origin have not changed much, as you can see by the fact that Dr. Seuss's Nerd has joined me in the page's icon (assuming that you're not viewing the page in the "Full Width" style), but it does seem like time to reorganize the material.
The factor that made me decide that nerd might be a label worth reclaiming was its early association with Dr. Seuss. Having grown up with the Cat in the Hat, Horton and the Grinch, there are worse things to identify with than a hirsute curmudgeonly Seuss character, especially when one is a hirsute curmudgeonly engineer, as I am.
Dust
If You Printed The Internet
If you printed the internet, stupid tree killing idea, but just in case you wanted to...here is what it would be...
If You Printed The Internet ... | CreativeCloud
Best Search Tools Chart
All on one table nice, very nice.
Best Search Tools Chart - Infopeople.org
TakingITGlobal Video 5
Quote of the day
It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.
Frederick Douglass
September 19, 2009
Student survey 2009 Question 5
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
Go Far
TakingITGlobal Video 4
Quote of the day
Training yourself to live in the present - without regretting the past or fearing the future - is a recipe for a happy life.
September 18, 2009
Cornered
TakingITGlobal Video 3
Student survey 2009 Question 4
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
Student "Learning Styles" Theory Is Bunk
The prediction is straightforward: Kids learn better when they are taught in a way that matches their learning style than when they are taught in a way that doesn't.
That's a straightforward prediction.
The data are straightforward too: It doesn't work.
The Answer Sheet
- Willingham: Student "Learning Styles" Theory Is Bunk
SCCS Continuous Improvement Framework
Each year we give our teachers some hints and tips on how to make the cyber school better..this is the first for the 2009-2010 school year.
The Cyber School Continuous Improvement Framework- Chat Room use
ZAP Reader
ZAP Reader is a web based speed reading program that will change the way you read on your computer. Current beta testers report reading twice as much in half the time--that's a 300% increase in reading speed, without any loss in comprehension! There is nothing to install, it works with most popular browsers, and it's totally free!
EtherPad: Realtime Collaborative Text Editing
EtherPad is the only web-based word processor that allows people to work together in really real-time.
EtherPad: Realtime Collaborative Text Editing
SCCS Motivation Poster
Motivator: Create your own motivational posters!
Do Students Cheat More in Online Classes? Maybe not.
A new study contradicts the perception that cheating is more widespread in online classes, finding that students in virtual courses were less likely to cheat than their face-to-face peers.
Online Teaching Tips
Welcome to Tips and Tricks for Teaching Online! We hope that you find this website is a great resource for teaching online. We have included tips and tricks for designing course content, facilitating and teaching online, developing learning objects, assessment ideas, and tutorials for blackboard, just to name a few. We gathered these tips from interviewing faculty members at conferences and workshops as well as carefully reviewing the literature.
Teacher Starting Salary vs. Annual Amount Spent on Inmates
Not only are there several states that pay significantly more for prisoners per year, but also in total, nearly half of the states either pay more for prisoners or have a minimal difference between the two. Maine, believe it or not, spends over $17,000 more per inmate than they do per teacher.
Teacher Starting Salary vs. Annual Amount Spent on Inmates at Educator® - Educational News
Learning Resource Exchange Portal
Welcome to the Learning Resource Exchange (LRE) portal for schools where you can find open educational resources and assets from many different countries and providers, including 18 Ministries of Education.
Bob on Medical Device Software
I am not sure what he is talking about with the .net application but he did use one of my cartoons and I am honoured...:)
A .NET Application that Never Dies | Bob on Medical Device Software
HOW SMART IS YOUR RIGHT FOOT?
HOW SMART IS YOUR RIGHT FOOT?
You have to try this please,
it takes 2 seconds. I could not believe this!
It is from an orthopaedic surgeon.............
This will confuse your mind and you will keep trying over and over again to see if you can outsmart your foot, but, you can't. It is pre-programmed in your brain!
1. While sitting at your desk in front of your computer, lift your right foot off the floor and make clockwise circles.
2. Now, while doing this, draw the number '6' in the air with your right hand. Your foot will change direction.
I told you so! And there's nothing you can do about it! You and I both know how stupid it is, but before the day is done you are going to try it again, if you've not already done so.
Quote of the day
Work in the invisible world at least as hard as you do in the visible one.
~Rumi
Student survey 2009 Question 3
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
September 17, 2009
Adequacy
TakingITGlobal Video 2
Quote of the day
"The world is round and the place which may seem like the end, may also be only the beginning."
Ivy Baker Priest
September 16, 2009
TakingITGlobal Video 1
ThinkQuest : Library
Over 7,000 websites created by students around the world who have participated in a ThinkQuest Competition.
Interesting Facts About the Internet and Social Web
This is a great collection of charts and videos that we have used in the past but all in one place...check it out.
Interesting Facts About the Internet and Social Web - 'Did You Know' Video Series
Brain Games & Brain Training
Brain Games
SCIENTIFICALLY DESIGNED
Shown to improve memory and attention
Detailed feedback and improvement tracking
Fun and easy: full workout in less than 10 minutes/day
Start your training today
Brain Games & Brain Training - Lumosity
Student Survey 2009 Question 2
Over seven hundred students shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy.
Series: Cyber School Students' Learning Styles
Virtual High School Meandering continues to be a friend to TADO and the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School, we do appreciate the continuing support that is shown by displaying our blog entries in an organized fashion...
Thank you again.
Series: Cyber School Students' Learning Styles « Virtual High School Meanderings
Gargled
Quote of the day
Education: the inculcation of the incomprehensible into the indifferent by the incompetent.
John Maynard Keynes
September 15, 2009
TakingITGlobal - SCCS Presentation
TakingITGlobal - SCCS Presentation - Cyber Planet & Learning Community Resources
Student survey 2009 Question 1
Over seven hundred high school students at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School shared with us what they thought of the cyber school, I will be sharing the answers to questions one per day...hope you enjoy. The survey tool was the LMS survey tool which is a course offered to all students when they register for an online course. They are asked to do a course survey in each of the courses after their midterm report. Hence the collection of questions...
Series: Cyber School Videos III
Wow thanks for the link...I really like seeing all the videos in one entry.
Series: Cyber School Videos III « Virtual High School Meanderings
Why Don't Students Like School?
After all, students are born as naturally curious creatures, so why are they turned off by education, even when they are paying to attend? Why can they remember the most trivial detail from a TV show or the words to a popular song, but not remember the answers on our tests? Willingham submits nine principles that he states explain this disconnect. Through these nine principles, he first attempts to explain how the minds of students work and then relate how to use that knowledge to improve teaching.
Why Don't Students Like School? | Learning In a Flat World
Reshaping Learning from the Ground Up
I'm roughly quoting Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, who said, "We don't need to reform the system; we need to replace the system."
Reshaping Learning from the Ground Up | Edutopia
Quote of the day
When you follow your energy, you get out of your own way. You relinquish control. You let go of judgments and expectations.
~Roberta Allen
On the Shoulders
Sarcasm
September 14, 2009
Social Media is BIGGER than you think? Are educators lagging behind?
What are educators doing? Are we using Facebook, Wikipedia, and YouTube in our classes? If not, are we lagging behind?
e-Learning Acupuncture: Social Media is BIGGER than you think? Are educators lagging behind?
10 Things I've Learned About Teaching Online
When I first started to think about teaching online, I realized I had a lot to learn. I had never been an online student, nor did I know much about distance education. I just knew I wanted to be a part of something I felt would benefit those students who--for whatever reason--could not come to a traditional classroom setting. I wanted to help create quality courses for these students that would incorporate the kinds of activity and discussion that typically took place in a classroom-based course.
I wanted to share some of the lessons I've learned over the years about online teaching with other online instructors who are just starting out. There is so much I wish I had known when I first got started, and I can only hope some of my reflections will be helpful to those who might be questioning whether online teaching is right for them.
eLearn: Best Practices
- 10 Things I've Learned About Teaching Online
Philadelphia's Public Libraries : kaput.
It's not just the books. Granted, the books are important. But what else do libraries provide? The Philadelphia libraries operate GED, ESL, and ABE programs. They bring books to schools, day care centers, and retirement homes. They teach computer courses, help small business owners, and host community meetings. Libraries are one of the few places in major cities where the internet can be accessed freely. In short, this is a travesty.
Philadelphia's Public Libraries : kaput. | RVA Magazine | Richmond, VA
Kids Online Resources
My son would love this...I will have to show it to him later.
Kids Online Resources - KidsOLR, Time Tutorial, Early Childhood, Preschool
Educational Games, Worksheets & Homework Help for Kids, Parents and Teachers
Game Classroom was developed to address needs we witnessed firsthand as parents and educators. Game Classroom is the newest web property from Earlier Media, where we are dedicated to providing trustworthy online destinations for children of all ages to learn, watch videos and play games online.
We've thoroughly searched the web for engaging and educational games for kids, and we've collaborated with top educators to ensure that all of our games are age-appropriate, relevant and compliant with academic standards. Our team of educators has also created a vast library of "Homework Help" as an additional resource for students, teachers and parents.
As online games become increasingly pervasive in the home, we strive to offer a site that adults can trust and children will enjoy. We promote education, imagination and literacy...while always making sure kids have fun on Game Classroom!
Educational Games, Worksheets & Homework Help for Kids, Parents and Teachers | Game Classroom
September 13, 2009
SCCS PD and Resources
Ulcer
Quote of the day
"There ain't no rules around here. We're trying to accomplish something." Thomas Edison
September 12, 2009
Quote of the day
Personal responsibility is the root of all personal and professional success.
~Bud Bilanich
September 11, 2009
SqoolTube: K-12 Educational Videos
Supporting Quality Online Opportunities for Learning.
A batch of instructional videos.
SqoolTube: K-12 Educational Videos
Innovation in educational technology. Why not?
The size of the global education industry, defined as all the money spent by governments, individuals, and corporations on education and training, is almost three times the size of the global entertainment industry, and double the size of the global telecommunications industry.* Education is bigger, in fact, than entertainment and telecom combined.
So why do education's technical innovations feel like hand-me-downs?
PolivkaVox: Innovation in educational technology. Why not?
SCCS Staff Profile Blog
Let it
Charter Schools Go Cyber
I wanted to make everyone aware that the most recent issue of TechTrends is a special issue focused on cyber charter schools. For those not familiar, TechTrends is a publication of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology.
TechTrends Special Issue: Charter Schools Go Cyber « Virtual High School Meanderings
Quote of the day
A mans growth is seen in the successive choirs of his friends...
Ralph Emerson
Swine-Flu Preparations Spur E-Learning Plans
Last school year, many educators were caught unprepared when schools closed in response to cases of swine flu. This time around, both the federal government and school districts are putting specific online-learning measures in place to get ready for possible closures or waves of teacher and student absences because of a flu outbreak.
Education Week: Swine-Flu Preparations Spur E-Learning Plans
September 10, 2009
Online Books, Poems, Short Stories
Free online books library for students, teachers, and the classic enthusiast.
Online Books, Poems, Short Stories - Read Print Library
SCCS Staff Learning Community
Stand
Spray away cyber students.
Well, school has started for another year and I walked into the brick and mortar high school next to our cyber school. Wow there is a lot of students in the halls and I would like to thank AXE for their very success advertising campaign that has worked wonders on every high school age boy. It is wild the bottles and bottles of AXE that these boys have been using in an attempt to produce the results that they see on the ads. It would be excellent if AXE could explain how using more is not better for anyone other than their bottom line.
Anyways this long introduction is just to explain how some building have posted a sign stating the need to limit the amount of heavy perfumes one wears when entering. I would like to put this down as another reason why cyber school are great, feel free to wear as much perfume or AXE as you want when doing your online course. We here at the cyber school do not have any limitation on the amount you wear.
Reason 1: Cyber School is a good place for ugly people (April 14 2005)
Reason 2: Cyber School students spray away... another good reason for taking cyber school.
Feel free to suggest others.
September 9, 2009
Quote of the day
Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city.
George Burns
JOURNEY TO THE END OF COAL
a very interesting design to a website, cool.
Memory prowess linked to gaming
Video war games could enhance a key element of intelligence that is vital to success in life, an expert has claimed.
Spending time on the Facebook networking site and solving Sudoku may have the same effect, according to psychologist Dr Tracy Alloway.
BBC NEWS | UK | Scotland | Tayside and Central | Memory prowess linked to gaming
BrainPOP - Animated Educational Site for Kids
Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, BrainPOP creates animated, curriculum-based content that supports educators and engages students.
High School Lesson Plans
A list of good lesson plans for those art teachers out there.
September 8, 2009
100 Useful Tools for Special Needs Students & Educators
With all of the new trends and tools in education technology, there's no reason for special needs students and their teachers and parents to be left behind. This list of 100 useful tools can help anyone with a learning disability like ADHD, dyslexia or test anxiety, as well as students with visual or hearing impairments, use the Internet and other technology systems to help them with reading, math, organization, social skills, and more.
100 Useful Tools for Special Needs Students & Educators | Teaching Tips
Quote of the day
A tree looks a lot taller in the desert than it does in the forest
SCCS No Handholding Approach
Phone Tap
Who is your role model?
) Pick your favorite number between 1-9
2) Multiply by 3 then
3) Add 3
4) Then again Multiply by 3 (I'll wait while you get the calculator....)
5) You'll get a 2 or 3 digit number....
6) Add the digits together
Now Scroll down
...............
With that number, see who your ROLE MODEL is from the list below:
1. Einstein
2. Oprah Winfrey
3. Charles Barkley
4. Jesus Christ
5. Bill Gates
6. Gandhi
7. Ronald Regan
8. Babe Ruth
9. TADO author
10. John F . Kennedy
Facebook 'enhances intelligence' but Twitter 'diminishes it'.
Spending time on the Facebook networking site could enhance a key element of intelligence that is vital to success in life, a psychologist has claimed, but using Twitter may have the opposite effect.
Facebook 'enhances intelligence' but Twitter 'diminishes it', claims psychologist - Telegraph
September 7, 2009
Live Forever
Quote of the day
Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Cyber Tracker and Counselling
September 6, 2009
Animal Testing
New Online SCCS Teachers Welcome
Quote of the day
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore,is not an act but a habit." ~Aristotle
September 5, 2009
Quote of the day
The quieter you become the more you can hear. ~Baba Ram
September 4, 2009
A library without the books
Cushing Academy has all the hallmarks of a New England prep school, with one exception.
This year, after having amassed a collection of more than 20,000 books, officials at the pristine campus about 90 minutes west of Boston have decided the 144-year-old school no longer needs a traditional library. The academy's administrators have decided to discard all their books and have given away half of what stocked their sprawling stacks - the classics, novels, poetry, biographies, tomes on every subject from the humanities to the sciences. The future, they believe, is digital.
A library without the books - The Boston Globe
Texting hurting children?
"Baroness Greenfield, the neuroscientist, is worried that sending text messages may cause young people to have shorter attention spans. If she's right, of course, none of those young people will be aware of this, because she expressed her views in a newspaper article of several hundred words, some of them long, all of them spelled correctly, and none of them using digits as substitutes for whole syllables. All terribly old-fashioned and out-of-d8. So
they won't have read it."
--Michael Deacon, columnist, The Daily Telegraph, 2009
e-Learning Programs Come in All Shapes and Sizes
Here's a sample of online learning programs serving very different populations: a small district spread over a vast area, a large inner-city school district, and a statewide program serving numerous districts.
ISTE | e-Learning Programs Come in All Shapes and Sizes
E-Learning sucks
The future of libraries, with or without books
The stereotypical library is dying -- and it's taking its shushing ladies, dank smell and endless shelves of books with it.
Libraries are trying to imagine their futures with or without books.
Books are being pushed aside for digital learning centers and gaming areas. "Loud rooms" that promote public discourse and group projects are taking over the bookish quiet. Hipster staffers who blog, chat on Twitter and care little about the Dewey Decimal System are edging out old-school librarians.
The future of libraries, with or without books - CNN.com
Mistakes
SCCS Course Designer Help
Teacher Activities
An extensive list of teacher's Activities...way coool
Teacher Activities - Scholar's Choice Children's Toys And Games
September 3, 2009
Quote of the day
A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour!
SCCS Staff Profile
College student
Last question in Learners SCCS Student Survey
This was an interesting exercise to see if there is a certain type of learner who is taking online courses at SCCS...look at the five charts of stats...let me know if you see a trend.
All My Faves | Education
This is a way cool link page...way coool.
If you have children check out the tab called Kids...again wayyyyyy coooool.
September 2, 2009
Quote of the day
Chance favors the prepared mind
School answering machine message
Don't all teachers around the world wish...
Imagination Cubed
Very cool draw with a friend...I like it
SCCS Facebook Images
Strangle it
Sequential vs Global Learners SCCS Student Survey
- Sequential learners tend to gain understanding in linear steps, with each step following logically from the previous one. Global learners tend to learn in large jumps, absorbing material almost randomly without seeing connections, and then suddenly "getting it."
- Sequential learners tend to follow logical stepwise paths in finding solutions; global learners may be able to solve complex problems quickly or put things together in novel ways once they have grasped the big picture, but they may have difficulty explaining how they did it.
Quote of the day
Go for it now. The future is promised to no one.
Wayne Dyer
September 1, 2009
Engage me Or Enrage me.
Anyone who has taught recently will recognize these three kinds of students:
The students who are truly self-motivated. These are the ones all teachers dream
about having (and the ones we know how to teach best). They do all the work we
assign to them, and more. Their motto is: "I can't wait to get to class." Unfortunately,
there are fewer and fewer of these.
1. The students who go through the motions. These are the ones who, although in their
hearts they feel that what is being taught has little or no relevance to their lives, are
farsighted enough to realize that their future may depend on the grades and
credentials they get. So they study the right facts the night before the test to achieve a
passing grade and become at least somewhat successful students. Their motto: "We
have learned to play school.' "
2. The students who "tune us out." These students are convinced that school is totally
devoid of interest and totally irrelevant to their life. In fact, they find school much less
interesting than the myriad devices they carry in their pockets and backpacks. These
kids are used to having anyone who asks for their attention?their musicians, their
movie makers, their TV stars, their game designers?work really hard to earn it. When
what is being offered isn't engaging, these students truly resent their time being
wasted. In more and more of our schools, this group is quickly becoming the majority.
The motto of this group? "Engage me or enrage me."
SCCS Daily Staff Newsletter
Reality lost
Cleaner Classroom Learning Kit
Meet the Clean Club. These "grime-fighters" are designed to help
you teach kids healthy habits, so they can steer clear of germs
that can make them sick.
Cleaner Classroom Learning Kit
Verbal vs Visual Learners SCCS Student Survey
Visual learners remember best what they see--pictures, diagrams, flow charts, time lines, films, and demonstrations. Verbal learners get more out of words--written and spoken explanations. Everyone learns more when information is presented both visually and verbally.
In most college classes very little visual information is presented: students mainly listen to lectures and read material written on chalkboards and in textbooks and handouts. Unfortunately, most people are visual learners, which means that most students do not get nearly as much as they would if more visual presentation were used in class. Good learners are capable of processing information presented either visually or verbally.
Quote of the day
"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind."
~William James
9 Ways To Show You Are A "Know It All In Control" Principal
"When you hear a new idea criticize it. Show how smart you are by pointing out some of the weaknesses and flaws which will hold it back. The more experienced you are, the easier it is to find fault with other people's ideas.
Education Innovation: 9 Ways To Show You Are A "Know It All In Control" Principal
Tetris players found to have greater brain efficiency, thicker cortex and better hair
You just knew all that Tetris playing you did as a kid yesterday was good for you, huh? A new study published by the big thinkers at Mind Research Network has found that "practicing Tetris" can actually improve brain efficiency and lead to a thicker cortex in other areas of the tabula rasa.
Tetris players found to have greater brain efficiency, thicker cortex and better hair
